I Know A Lot About Love
by VivaAmerica
Summary: Nightwing meets Starfire and sparks fly. Also, Wally isn't dead.


"But to see the way that mankind loves…You could search the furthest reaches of the universe and never find anything more beautiful!" - Yvaine from _Stardust_

* * *

" _Whoa, easy! I'm not going to hurt you!" Nightwing shouted, dodging another blow. The alien ignored him and shot another blast of green energy. It hit a building behind him with a huge explosion._

"That's it, I'm taking her down," _a voice rumbled via mic. Nightwing's masked eyes widened minutely._

" _Superboy, wait-"_

 _Too late. Superboy jumped from a roof and landed on their attacker. She screamed and fell to the asphalt. For a moment the two men though she was out, but with deadly speed she shot up and, using the giant manacles that bound her wrists together to her advantage, smashed both fists against Conner's jaw in a vicious uppercut. He sailed high into the air before crashing into the street, leaving a sizable crater. Nightwing visibly flinched when she whipped around to face him._

 _The alien princess growled as the Earthling eluded another blast. He was nimble and quick, if not as strong as the other one. One of the metal objects the humans traveled in caught her eye, giving her an idea. She flipped it into the air with one leg and sent it flying in the man's direction with a spinning kick._

 _Nightwing rolled out of the way just in time. The car crashed into the road with a shriek as metal grated against rock. The alien was panting now, her eyes wide. She looked frightened, like a cornered animal trying desperately to escape. "I just want to help-" he began. Another energy bolt cut him off as it clipped the corner of a nearby store and sent him tumbling head over heels along with debris._

 _Koriand'r was impressed when the black-clad male got to his feet. From what she had observed thus far, the people of his planet were very vulnerable. He reminded her of the warriors she knew on Tamaran, and she decided to not hold back anymore as a sign of respect._

 _As she stalked towards him, she didn't notice his hand reach for his waist, and was unprepared when he threw something at their feet. Thick black smoke billowed up around them, effectively blinding her. Something gripped her shoulder and she reacted instantly, twisting to dislodge the hold while flying up into the air._

 _When she looked down the cloud had disappeared and the man was gone._

* * *

She found him looking down at the Earth through one of the long windows in the ship (no, not a ship, the humans called it a satellite). It was a pretty planet, though small. He grinned at her softly when she came to stand beside him.

"Are you settled in?" he asked.

"Yes. M'gann is most pleasant." Koriand'r nodded, trying to find the right words. " I… apologize, for attacking before. I-I…"

He cut her off. "Don't worry about it. You must have been scared when you crash-landed here. You certainly weren't whelmed." Koriand'r cocked her head to one side. She was almost sure that word wasn't part of his native language. Another anomaly, "aster", floated inside her head, and she wondered if this man had been the right person to learn English from.

Nightwing's cheeks reddened a bit. "Though, I have to admit, you kind of… surprised me earlier when you… you know."

* * *

 _Others were attacking her now. Some had superhuman abilities, some did not, but either way she was outnumbered. Koriand'r absolutely refused to be taken captive again. All she wanted was to get these restraints off and get as far away from her jailers as possible!_

 _She landed on the roof of a building and took a deep breath. She was getting tired._

 _A male voice rang out through the night and the defenders stopped, some looking relieved and others annoyed. The man from before suddenly sprang into Koriand'r's line of sight. She twitched nervously and shuffled backwards. The man held out one hand in a placating manner while reaching for his waist again with the other._

 _Thinking he was pulling another trick, she charged him. He yelped and held out a pointed metal object, making her halt a mere foot from him. Koriand'r looked at it shrewdly. It seemed to be… actually, she didn't know what it was. The man gestured to her manacles and the object in his hand, speaking slowly. She still didn't understand a word he was saying, but she got the intent. Slowly, distrustfully, she held out her handcuffs. She was amazed when, with a few deft movements and a clank, they fell off._

 _Nightwing smiled as a grin broke across the alien's face. She stared down at him wonderingly, as if she'd never expected such kindness._

 _Looking around at the waiting heros and wrecked city, Koriand'r felt guilty for how she'd acted. She did not wish to further antagonize these people, but was too unfamiliar with their culture to attempt reconciliation. Still, that could be fixed easily enough. Grabbing the back of her rescuer's neck, she smashed her lips against his._

* * *

"Is that gesture unusual among your people?" she asked curiously.

Nightwing chuckled. "No, but it was a little odd in that context I guess..."

"How strange…" Koriand'r shook her head. "Skin on skin contact is a transfer of knowledge among my people. I was learning your language."

For a moment she thought he looked disappointed. "Oh, is that what it was?"

"Yes." She glanced over her shoulder worriedly. "How is Superboy?"

Nightwing let out a full-blown laugh. "He'll be fine. It's not like he hasn't faced worse." Confusion flickered across his face. "Wait… you said _skin_ contact, right?"

Koriand'r eyed him. "Yes."

"Then, if all you needed to do was touch me… Why did you…?" He blushed a bright red and suddenly couldn't look her in the eye. "Nevermind," he said, giving a couple fake coughs.

* * *

" _I'm Nightwing."_

 _The alien princess looked at the human properly for the first time. He was a few inches shorter than her, with pale skin (so different from her people's golden tones) and dark hair long enough to fringe his forehead. His features were handsome - at least, by Tamaranean standards - even though he hid his eyes behind a mask. His dark clothing helped him blend in with the night._

" _Nightwing," she repeated, liking the way it rolled off her tongue. It was obviously a fake name, but it suited him._

 _He smiled at her, revealing two rows of perfect teeth. " And you? What's your name?"_

 _She didn't want to tell him her true name. With her newly acquired knowledge she made a quick translation._

" _I am Starfire."_

* * *

Beastboy's eyes widened a bit. "You're a _princess_?" he asked.

Koriand'r nodded, feeling uncomfortable as others turned to look at her.

She hadn't left the Watchtower since she'd been escorted there, and that was almost three days ago. She'd watched the heroes gather and leave on different missions during that time, and had tried to get to know them better. So far M'gann's brother had been the friendliest (besides M'gann and Nightwing of course). He was always asking about the creatures that lived on Tamaran and trying to morph into them.

"So, you're going to be queen someday?" Beastboy prodded, chewing on some earth treat.

"No," Koriand'r quickly corrected him. "I have an older sister. She… she will be Tamaran's ruler." This conversation was bringing up too many memories she wanted to forget.

Unbeknownst to her, M'gann sensed her darkening mood and sent a quick thought to her little brother. Beastboy, for his part, shrugged and said, "Noted," in a nonchalant manner (or was it chalant?) before changing the subject.

* * *

 _The Tamaranean watched with trepidation as Nightwing argued with the cowled man dressed in imposing black. She still wasn't familiar enough with the English language to understand most the conversation, especially when they were speaking in hushed tones. There was always an hour or so before she could completely master a newly acquired tongue._

 _The Martian approached her and gave a friendly smile._ "Hi," _a voice said in her mind. With a soft whimper of surprise Koriand'r's mental shields came crashing down, effectively cutting off the green girl. Miss Martian immediately tried to apologize out loud, but was cut off when Nightwing started yelling._

" _We can't just leave her on her own!"_

 _This was too much. Too much had happened too quickly. Koriand'r squeezed her eyes shut as the world around her buckled and turned pale._

"We're just taking a break."

Koriand'r paused by the open doorway at the sound of Nightwing's voice. His back was to her and he was facing some computers lined against the wall. Aqualad was leaning against a chair, an unconvinced look on his face. Neither of them noticed her.

Nightwing sighed melodramatically. "Listen, Batgirl and I… it's complicated. We're just giving each other some space."

"Please understand, I'm not afraid that this may interfere with the Team's dynamic, as both of you are very professional," Aqualad began slowly, "But I worry about you, my friend, and how this will affect your happiness."

Nightwing's hands ceased their typing for a moment. "Heh, Robin said almost the same thing to me the other day." He chuckled self deprecatingly. "Apparently I have trouble trusting others. I mean, I lied to the Team, right?"

Koriand'r quickly moved on down the hallway, feeling that she'd observed something meant to be kept private.

She had trouble trusting others too.

* * *

 _She did not like the holograms. They made everyone sad, especially Nightwing._

* * *

Captain Cold actually screamed in shock as a fiery green bolt shot down from the sky and melted the ice encasing Kid Flash. Bart looked up and saw Starfire hovering overhead with a struggling Captain Boomerang in her firm grip. He grinned the trademark Allen grin and landed a lightning fast punch to Cold's jaw that sent the villain sprawling and down for the count.

"Not bad for your first mission!" he called up to her.

Starfire grinned, pleased with her success. Combat was what she knew best, and she loved putting it to good use. The stunning purple and silver suit accented with green gems was an added bonus.

* * *

 _Smacking her dry lips together, Koriand'r opened the door to the refrigerator in the Watch Tower. She was thirsty and hoping for something other than water to drink. Normally she would have made herself a beverage of mashed up fruits and ice (a smoothie, as M'gann called it), but Kid Flash had raided the kitchen an hour before and left almost nothing behind in his wake._

 _She noticed a bright yellow bottle and grabbed it curiously. "Mus-tard," she murmured aloud, shaking the bottle slightly. There seemed to be a thick liquid substance inside. A smoothie? Koriand'r twisted off the cap and tilted her head back as she poured a bit of the yellow liquid onto her tongue. A hot, spicy sensation spread across her mouth and she squealed with delight. This beverage resembled many of the drinks she'd had on Tamaran! Eagerly, she began gulping it down._

" _Um, Starfire?"_

 _Koriand'r whirled around nervously. It was Tigress._

 _Tigress had never acted unkindly towards her, but Koriand'r disliked the distant (almost emotionless) way she treated everyone. Such behavior was unnerving. However, the blonde was now looking at her with a bewildered expression. Her eyes flitting from her to the mustard bottle._

 _The alien princess suddenly blushed. "Oh no, is this your beverage? I'm so sorry-"_

" _What? No, no!" Tigress stopped her quickly, looking embarrassed herself. "It doesn't actually belong to anyone. Humans usually don't drink mustard straight from the bottle, that's all."_

 _Koriand'r frowned. She wanted to fit in with this world. Tigress sighed at the sight of her distraught expression. "It's fine. You can drink as much as you want." She shook her head and left the kitchen._

 _Taking another long gulp of mustard, Koriand'r watched Tigress go. There was a sadness that clung to that girl, though she didn't know why._

 _She frowned when she realized the bottle was almost empty. "I'll have to ask M'gann to buy some more."_

* * *

The creature cradled in her arms was a large, pale yellow larva covered with topaz circular markings all along its back. Its beady black eyes stuck out from its head, and as it babbled excitedly sharp teeth could be seen. Koriand'r thought it was beautiful.

"Looks like Killer Moth did manage to mutate some moth larvae after all," Robin mused.

Zatanna made a face as it waved eight stubby legs into the air. "I'll change it back to normal, and then we can leave this warehouse to the police," she said, gesturing around them. The warehouse they were standing in had glass tubes filled with moth larvae set in a circle around Killer Moth's latest invention (which had been smashed to smithereens by Koriand'r). Killer Moth was tied to one of the tubes.

"No! Stop!" Koriand'r yelled, clutching the creature to her chest. Robin and Zatanna looked at her worriedly.

"I'm not going to hurt it, Starfire," Zatanna explained gently.

Koriand'r shook her head and said impulsively, "I love him just the way he is. I want to keep him!"

Robin's eyes widened in shock but he said nothing. Zatanna raised an eyebrow and looked at the larva again. "Are you sure?" Koriand'r nodded emphatically. The sorceress shrugged. "Fine by me, but you have to explain this to Aqualad."

The mutated moth burbled happily and Koriand'r grinned. What a cute little bumgorf this silky soft creature was.

"His name is Silkie!"

* * *

" _Tell me about Tamaran," Nightwing had said._

 _Koriand'r gulped. The memories - the homesickness - still hurt._

 _He sensed this. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have-"_

" _No, it is fine." Koriand'r leaned a hand against the windows that looked out over earth. Perhaps sharing her memories would make them hurt less. She told him about her people, her land. The exquisite beauty of it, and her culture. With loving words she described X'hal. She spoke quietly of how she had been the heir to the Tamaranean throne at one time. Her sister was a cripple by her people's standards because she could not convert ultraviolet radiation into energy._

" _It was never Komand'r's fault," she explained quickly. "She was very sick as a baby."_

 _Nightwing nodded sympathetically. Then he frowned. "Komand'r?"_

 _Koriand'r blinked and blushed at her mistake. "T-the English translation for Komand'r would be Blackfire."_

" _And Starfire in Tamaranean is…?" Nightwing prodded._

 _The princess sniffed and asked a question of her own. "What is your true name?"_

" _Point taken."_

Starfire was away on a deep-space mission when _she_ appeared.

Aqualad looked her up and down carefully. She was Tamaranean (her golden skin, tall stature, and glowing eyes gave away that much), but she was otherwise very different from Starfire. She looked to be a bit older than himself with angular features, violet pupils, and curly dark auburn hair. The alien woman eyed the Watchtower, looking mildly impressed. Aqualad looked back at the other members of the Team, who also looked puzzled. They'd answered a distress signal from a spaceship with a malfunctioning engine, and had found this woman trapped inside. All of the members of the Justice League were away on missions, and Starfire had gone with Superman on one of them because of her knowledge of the Vegan system.

The woman smiled toothily and reached out to Aqualad, her fingers skimming the tattoos on his left arm.

"χαῖρε," she said in perfect Atlantean. Then she shook her head and tried again in English. "Greetings, I am Blackfire."

* * *

" _Whoa…"_

 _Koriand'r gasped and spun around, her feet brushing the sand. Nightwing was looking at her admiringly, his face slightly flushed._

 _After a tiring mission, Koriand'r had returned to the Watchtower that day to find Nightwing waiting for her… in normal human clothing. He wanted to show her Happy Harbor ("We both need a break.") so could she spare an afternoon? She most certainly could._

 _She'd found herself falling in love with the ocean as they'd walked down the beach. It was glittering, powerful, and amplified sunlight. What more could one ask? Acting on impulse, she'd jumped deep into its coolness before breaching the surface and flying high into the air. Nightwing laughed and jumped in as well, showing off his swimming prowess for her benefit._

 _Now, though, she had been focused on absorbing ultraviolet radiation. She'd unconsciously floated an inch off the ground, but Nightwing's scrutiny made her tether herself to the earth._

 _Nightwing reddened further and he looked out at the ocean. "You were, um, glowing."_

 _Koriand'r's grin faded a bit. All of her people absorbed sunlight, but they did not glow. She could only think of one other who_ glowed _as she did_.

She was trapped and in pain. Scientists with cruel eyes were-

 _She slammed her eyes shut, forcing her mind to stay in the present. That was in the past. She was_ safe _._

" _Star?" Nightwing asked. She heard the sand shift as he walked closer. Pure impulse took over then. Perhaps her subconscious wanted a distraction from the repressed memories. Maybe she was simply tired of not knowing. Either way, Nightwing's tinted sunglasses were off before he could blink._

 _Blue, blue, blue. As blue as the ocean meeting the sky._

" _Amazing…" she breathed._

* * *

"Did you really think you were _safe?"_ Komand'r asked in Tamaranean. Koriand'r grunted as her sister's purple starbolt hit her directly on the chest and sent her crashing through one of the Watchtower's many levels. She vaguely heard the League shouting from… from somewhere. She had no time to think.

Koriand'r quickly forced her aching body to roll out of the way just before Komand'r's fist slammed into the place her head had been, leaving a huge dent. She stood (Ow, her ankle felt like a pile of splinters), and took to the air. Komand'r shot more starbolts at her, which she dodged with more ease. Why was Komand'r just _standing_ there? Why-

Oh.

 _Oh._

Komand'r still couldn't fly.

* * *

 _Nightwing snatched the sunglasses back and practically rammed them back onto his face. Koriand'r didn't try to stop him, though she thought concealing such beautiful eyes was a waste._

" _W-what was that for?" Nightwing demanded. He was pouting a bit._

" _I like your eyes," the princess replied bluntly. "I thought they would be brown, since that is the dominant pigment among humans." She grinned when he scowled (and blushed), and stopped herself from taking the glasses again._

 _For a while they stared at the sunset. Nightwing was rather stiff, seemingly unable to bounce back into his usual cheerful demeanor. Perhaps this was because something so personal had just been unwillingly revealed. Koriand'r thought this a bit silly, but she would make an effort to restore his peace of mind._

" _My name is Koriand'r."_

 _If Nightwing had whipped his head around any faster he probably would have gotten whiplash. As it was, he gawked at the Tamaranean. She keep her eyes fixed on the sea. Perhaps he found her name strange, or ugly! She shouldn't have disclosed it so flippantly._

" _Koriand'r…" Nightwing repeated slowly, tasting every syllable. She peeked at him then, and was relieved to see a smile on his face._

" _Can I call you Kory?"_

* * *

It was over. Green Lantern was transporting her sister to Oa to stand trial.

For the third time in as many weeks, Koriand'r stared down at Earth. What good was this tiny dustball if it couldn't even hide her? She wanted to blast something, tear the metal railings into shrapnel and make every window in this cursed satellite shatter into a thousand pieces - never mind that she could only withstand the vacuum of space for so long. Rage and grief cancelled each other out, so she settled for letting her forehead thump against the glass.

She could hear the League moving about busily behind her. There was much to repair, many to heal. Aqualad (Komand'r's first casualty) was in the Watchtower's ICU. M'gann's featherlight touch brushed the edges of her mind, but she mentally pulled away. No need to subject an ally to the uncontrolled storm raging in her thoughts.

Oh, _why_ did her sister hate her? She'd tried so hard to please her in the past. Even after Blackfire had betrayed her planet, sold her younger sister into slavery, she'd hoped that perhaps it was part of an elaborate plan to rid Tamaran of the Citadel once and for all. She'd panicked when they'd both been captured by those barbaric Psions (Komand'r couldn't defend herself as Koriand'r could, she could die!), only to be betrayed yet again when she'd helped her sister escape from those scientists and their twisted experiments. To be betrayed by her own blood, by the person she should have been able to trust the most - oh, it hurt too much. It was an icy agony that wrenched her heart and tortured her mind.

A pair of arms wrapped around her waist, pulled her out of the black pit she'd been stumbling through. She let out a slow breath, allowed him to relax the fists she hadn't realized were clenched. Nightwing's silky black hair brushed against the back of her neck as he continued to hug her from behind. Koriand'r lifted her head a fraction. He was so warm; warmer than sunlight.

* * *

" _Is my full name too difficult to pronounce easily?" Koriand'r asked. She liked the nickname, loved it really, but she was unsure whether it implied the familiar camaraderie here that it would have on Tamaran… or if it was simply the custom on Earth to simplify names for expedience._

 _Nightwing smiled. "No, but… I mean, we're friends right?"_

 _Koriand'r grinned. It would seem that nicknames carried the same connotation here as it did on Tamaran._

" _Yes, we are. I like Kory."_

 _Kory sounded like confidence and valor. Like the person who wore it was strong enough to overcome anything. These were qualities she desperately wanted for herself._

" _Kory it is, then!"_

* * *

Everyone was agitated to the point of becoming hysterical.

A young man wearing a tattered yellow and red costume had appeared out of thin air in Central City. Koriand'r stared at his unconscious form through the ICU unit window. The Flash and Bart stood by the bed, looking so scared and so hopeful. Tigress had collapsed in a chair by his side and couldn't stop crying. Nightwing stood beside her, gripping her shoulders. He looked as if his world had been shaken to its very foundations. The heroes around Starfire were whispering something about a "Speed Force", but she was too fixated on the man's battered and bruised face to pay attention.

She'd seen him before, this youthful redhead with amazing speed, in the room with all the holograms.

* * *

 _He'd told her his name just before she'd left for the Vegan system, before Komand'r had appeared._

" _Good luck, Kory," he'd whispered._

 _Koriand'r blushed and let her forehead fall against his gently. "It really isn't fair. There's no suitable nickname for Nightwing," she'd mumbled._

 _Nightwing had glanced over his shoulder, where Superman and Batman were deep in discussion. "My friends call me Richard, or Dick."_

 _Richard. Dick. They both implied something different: elegance and confidence. Together, they formed a whole that encompassed both Nightwing and his alter ego._

* * *

"You know, Dick's crazy about you."

Koriand'r jumped in surprise and turned around. Wally West grinned apologetically.

"You should be in bed," Koriand'r replied, eyeing the crutches he was heavily leaning on.

Wally rolled his eyes. "Puh-leeze, I've been in bed for almost a week. I'm almost back to full strength, honestly."

She might have believed him if his legs hadn't trembled so much when he sat down at the table. Grabbing a mustard bottle, Koriand'r joined him.

"So, how and why am I affecting Dick's mental faculties?"

The speedster stared at her for a moment before remembering his previous statement. "Oh, that!" He chuckled. "It's an Earth expression. It means he's head over heels for you." Koriand'r merely raised an eyebrow and he laughed at himself. "Sorry, I mean he's in love with you."

Koriand'r blushed furiously and took a sip of her mustard. "I believe you are mistaken," she answered quietly.

Wally shook his head emphatically. "Nope, I've known Dick for a long time, and I've never seen him act like this around any other girl. Trust me, he's dated a lot of girls." White hot jealousy stabbed at Koriand'r's chest, and she looked away before the emotion could register in her eyes. "Heck, he and Batgirl used to be a big item - him and Zatanna too, actually - but he never seemed as seriously in love with them as he is with you, Star."

Little tendrils of hope wrapped their way around her heart, and Koriand'r smiled softly.


End file.
